NCSL’s Legislative Summit in Louisville

I am happy to report that my trip to the National Conference of State Legislatures’ Annual Legislative Summit was a success. Over 4,500 people attended the summit, including 713 legislators and 398 legislative staff members.

Legislators, legislative staff, and other policymakers stopped by the booth to discuss a variety of issues including scope of practice, animal welfare, veterinary loan repayment, and breed-specific legislation. In addition, many attendees asked our veterinarian volunteers questions about their own pets.

On Tuesday, July 27th, I was lucky enough to be joined by two FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Dogs provided by FEMA’s Tennessee Task Force. The dogs drew hundreds of attendees to our booth. Both the handlers and the dogs enjoyed greeting everyone and the handlers answered many questions about emergency preparedness and urban search and rescue. I have included a few pictures of our canine volunteers and their handlers below.